Arch Linux

umpalumpa1985

Member

From: America

Registered: 2007-12-05

Posts: 134

I Always Come Back

Every once in a while, I look to change up my perspective on things.  I like trying new things, I'm a pretty adventurous guy, I have a pretty big thirst for knowledge and experience.  So every once in a while (maybe every six months or so), I backup my home folder, pick a random distribution out of the top 100 on Distrowatch, and install it.  To be completely honest, there is not that much difference from distro to distro, with the exception, of course, of default desktop environment or window manager (or lack thereof).  Yes, the tools on each one are different, the command/interface to update the system are slightly different, but the basic underlying principle and even syntax, most of the time, are similar.  Most of the distros today are going to come with a fully loaded DE, a cute little notification somewhere on the screen when updates are available, and nifty little tools to help you install proprietary drivers and other things of that nature.
     And then there's Arch Linux.  See, out of the world of similar, bland distributions that aim to make everybody's life simpler (according to their definition of 'simple,' which in reality means 'easy'), Arch is different.  Arch is different because it's less.  Arch is different because it doesn't riddle my user experience with 'tools' loaded with 'features' popping up every two minutes asking me if I would like to install this or that or the other thing.  Because it doesn't try to be 'easy,' but it really does try to be simple.
     I've been using some variant of Linux or *BSD since 2005 or so, and Arch since the beginning of 2007.  Now like I mentioned before, I've taken a few short leaves of absence from Arch Linux.  Whenever I install some new distribution, I try to keep an objective perspective, and really give it an honest shot.  And none of them compare.  Arch is so fast, so simple, so unbelievably UNCLUTTERED compared to the rest of them, that I just keep coming back.  And the best thing:  I love it for being so simple and clean, yet there is probably somebody out there who has the exact kind of desktop I don't enjoy, and they love it.  Because they tailored it exactly to their idea of the perfect desktop.  Everybody's Arch experience is completely different, yet similar in so many ways.  That's why I love it.  Look at any official <any month> screenshot thread, and you will see 10 different WM's/DE's, and no two people's setup looking anything alike.
     My most recent adventure was with the new openSUSE Milestone.  After maybe a month, back to Arch.  Maybe I'm just stubborn, and just too used to my way of doing things to be able to change.  In any case, after I reinstalled Arch, my wife sat down and said, "Thank God.  I was wondering when you were gonna get rid of that other crap!"  Arch FTW.
     Thanks, Arch Linux developers and community, for being awesome, and making my Linux experience for the last (almost) four years an absolute pleasure.

--Johnny

---

Never interrupt your enemy when he's making a mistake.    ~Napoleon Bonaparte

litemotiv

Forum Fellow

Registered: 2008-08-01

Posts: 5,026

Re: I Always Come Back

Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-da
Our little Archers never stray far

---

ᶘ ᵒᴥᵒᶅ

whaevr

Member

Registered: 2008-03-17

Posts: 182

Re: I Always Come Back

Oompa Loompa doom-pa-dee-da
Our little Archers never stray far

if you try you'll experience the happiness too.
Oompa loompa doom-pa-dee-do!
...doom-pa-de-do.

Last edited by whaevr (2010-11-01 01:33:58)